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“I Wish I Had Known That! Real-Life Tips & Hints When Researching at the Courthouse”

“I Wish I Had Known That! Real-Life Tips & Hints When Researching at the Courthouse”. True stories from Amanda Clark, East-Central Indiana genealogist and founder of East Central Indiana Genealogy Alliance.

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“I Wish I Had Known That! Real-Life Tips & Hints When Researching at the Courthouse”

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  1. “I Wish I Had Known That! Real-Life Tips & Hints When Researching at the Courthouse” True stories from Amanda Clark, East-Central Indiana genealogist and founder of East Central Indiana Genealogy Alliance

  2. Tip #1:  Always check the days and hours that courthouse offices are open, especially when traveling out of town to research!  Check for a website or phone number.  Also, if genealogical research isn’t noted on their website, call ahead to find out if the general public has access to their old records.

  3. Tip #2:  Learn the offices where certain documents are held: --Clerk:Marriage, divorce, probate, wills, estate, court records (civil and criminal cases), naturalization records --Recorder:Deeds, land records, mortgages (Rush County has many old newspapers here!) --Health Department:  Birth and death records --Some counties may have an Archives Department where the oldest documents are stored. --Some counties may store their oldest documents off-site and require advance notice of what records you seek.

  4. Tip #3:  Write down on paper important information regarding the documents you seek, such as your ancestor’s name, the date or date range of the event, and take it with you.  Sometimes, a courthouse will not allow you to bring in your cellphone or other electronic devices (Henry County).   I use a small notebook to (1) record what information I seek and (2) write down where I found it and any other fascinating tidbits or names.

  5. Tip #4:  When looking at the old records and making notes to yourself on your paper, use pencil.  Unfortunately, I have seen comments in ink added to registers by people who were correcting a misspelling or date. Recordin your own notes how it was transcribed or written at that time and make a note in your citation as to any discrepancies.

  6. Tip #5:  Regarding citations, make sure you note where you find these documents!  This is of extreme importance when you pick up the copy of the document a couple weeks later and can’t remember what book you found it in or whoever made your copy missed getting the page number copied.

  7. Tip #6:  Ask staff first if you are allowed to snap a picture of a document with your cellphone.  If it is allowed, try to remember to turn your flash off (the flash can actually cause degeneration of the record).  Even if you take a picture, it’s a good idea to go ahead and get a hard copy of the record.  Most times, the staff at the courthouse will take the book (usually oversized heavy registers) and make the copy as they are accustomed to doing so.

  8. Tip #7:  If possible, ask to see the actual register book or document before the staff transcribes it.  Also, try to snap your own photo of it, if allowed. For example, in New Castle birth and death records are recorded in a register book and when you request a certificate the staff will transcribe what is handwritten in the book into their computer and print the certificate. Check the certificate before you leave the office! Also, if the health department has a computer system where they enter information from the register and then print the document, most times they’ll check the computer first to see if someone has already requested that document, which they will then print and not even pull the book.

  9. Tip #8:  Look for the indexes!  This will save you an untold amount of time.  I recently did some research in the clerk’s office in the Rush County Courthouse, looking for probate and estate records.  They have the original documents stored in hundreds of metal boxes that line the upper half of the room.  I found the general index, which gave me the book and page number to find the general information about the estate but it also gave me the box number to find the actual documents!  And thankfully that box was within reach.

  10. Tip #9:  If you need to hire a researcher to search at a courthouse that is a great distance from you, check the Association of Professional Genealogists website (www.apgen.org).  Not using an APG researcher was a disappointment and, frankly, a waste of money and time.

  11. Tip #10:  I have a friend who earned her Ph.D. in history at an Ivy League school and is also an archivist.  Her tip to me when researching at a repository such as a courthouse?  Bring in a small gift for the staff, like store-bought baked goods.  Maybe a gift card to a popular coffee shop, flowers in the spring, movie tickets?  Most times, the staff will work hard to find what you’re looking for and most likely they don’t get thanked often enough.

  12. Extra Links! FunStuffForGenealogists.com APGen.org January-March 2016 edition of the NGS Magazine, titled “Cameras in the Courthouse” by Pam Anderson (NGSGenealogy.org) Randolph County: randolphcounty.us/departments/clerk Henry County: henryco.net/ClerksOffice.aspx Rush County: http://www.rushcounty.in.gov/public/ countyoffices/clerk/index.cfm

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